Range finder mechanism



Feb. 13, 1951 IBQLSEY 2,541,193

RANGE FINDER MECHANISM Original Filed Dec. :51, 1940 By aw lg VEN TOR.

Patented Feb. 13, 1951 RANGE FINDER MECHANISM 'JacquesBol'sey, New York,N. Y. Original, estimation April "30, lildt seriallio. 485,177, whichisa. substitute for application Serial No. 372,507, December 31, 1940.l) ivi'ded and this" application August 22, 1946, Serial No. 692,318; InSwitzerland November 8; 1940 Section Piibl icj aw 690, August 8, 1946Patent expires November 8,1960

My present invention relates to improvements in photographic andcinematographic cameras and more particularly to a combined rangeandview-finder unit adapted to be built-in or mountedas separate unit'to''cameras 'of the above type.

My present application i's a division of my prior appli etionsenm No.485,177, new Patent No. 2,407,917, which in turn a substitute forabandoned abplicatioh Serial Nb. 372,507, filed De= c'ernber 31,1940.

It is an object to combine a camera with a built-in combined range andview finder arrangeinent.

A furth'er object of my invention consists in constructive i'nean'senabling the use of the same viewing window for rangeand view=findihgpuri e a i v The novel features which I consider as characteristic formy invention are set forth in par ticiilarin the appended claiihs. Theinvention it's'elf,'however, both as to its construction and its methodof'operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereofwill be best understood from the following description of specificembodiments", when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

Fig. 1 shows a new combined rangeand viewfinder, with'the camera casingin cross-section and the camera itself only-partly shown; in rangefinding positien; and s Fig; 2 shows the seine combined range Viewfinder, in viewfinding position.

As shown in the drawing, the camera cornpiises a camera casing I I, acamera lens l2, a

and

lens mo'liiit l3 for lens l2 arranged on'th front wall 14 of the cameracasing H, and a rear wall 21. e

T In accordance with my present invention I combine with the abovecamera a range'finderarrangement comprising two openings l8 and IS inthe front wall H of casing ll defining a horizontalibase and adapted toaccept two light beams and 2| coming' from the object to bephotographed; the rangefinder arrangement further comprises a firstreflecting membere. g. a reflecting mirror 32 reflecting light beam 20along .path 23. This mirror-is journalled turn ably,-as indicated bynumeral 33, and provided with a lever arm *3! cooperating with acammounted on the lens mount l3 and moving 5 claims. (01. sis-2.4)

together with lenslz Thus, lever 34 adjusts mirro 32 in accordance withthe movement of lens 12. a i .7

The second reflecting 'rhir'ror 24 is arranged on a support 35, securdtothe camera body by in'a'ns of slot 31 and pins 38 near the Wall 21,slidable parallelly thereto so as to refiect light beam 23 into theviewifigbpenin'glfi. on this support are filoii'ritejd es'ides mirror2'4, the lens 39 forming a part "6f the view finder i1nit, anjd lens 4|]I0rm'ihg' a art of the range finder iiiiit. A secon separate s pport 14is arranged near wall, It. Thi'sjsiippoit 4! is secured to the camerabodyby meanest fsl'ot *a'z a nd sins "43, sli'dable p'arall'elly to wallI4. On this support is iiioui'it e'd lens 44 forming a part, of the Viewfinder unit.

The lever 15 engages with its lever arms Q5 correspohdiri'g cut-fonts 47n the supports 36 and 41. A rotatable shaft tillis secured to lever 45at its pivoting point for manually turning this lever between thepositions Shawn in Fig 'ures 1 and 2, Thus, it is possible to shift byturn i'ng shaft the 1ever 45 in the direction indi= cated by arrowsj ga.This will resist in sh fting of the su port and M in direction of arrows48 from their position shown in Fig; 1 into their position shown inFig.2, and back. It is evident thatiri its posititiiigshown in l fig. 1,the rangeana view finder unit is adapted for reng mnm ing, while in itspositicn shown in Fig.12it is able to serve for view finding; Thus byshifting the supports from one position into the other, I may use thesafhe viewing Window either for rangeer tor viewnd ng purseses;

-W-ithout further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gistof my invention that others c'an by applying current knowledge readilyadaptit for various applications Witii'oiit omitting features that, fromthe standpoint of prior art; -fairly constitute essentialcharacteristics of the generic or specific. aspects of this invention,and therefore siich adaptations should and are intended to becomprehended within the meaning andrange ofequivalence of the followingclaims.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: o

1-. In a camera of the character described, a combined range andviewvfinder unit comprising two openings in the front wall of the cameracasing defining a horizontal base and adapted to accept two light beamscoming from the object to be photographed, a first reflecting memberarranged inside of said casing in the path of the first of said lightbeams and reflecting it inside of said casing along a path parallel tosaid camera front wall, a second reflecting member arranged at leastpartly in the path of the second of said light beams and adapted toreflect said reflected first light beam in a direction par allel to thepath of said second light beam, a movable support for said secondreflecting member for moving said member out of the path of said secondlight beam, a viewing opening in the rear wall of aid camera casingarranged in the path of said second and said twice reflected first lightbeams, a view finder lens, a movable support for said view finder lens,and means to move said movable support with said view finder lens in thepath of said second light beam when said reflect" ing member is movedout of its path, respectively, to move it out of the path of said secondlight beam when said reflecting member is moved into its path.

2. In a camera of the character described, a combined range and viewfinder unit comprising two openings in the front wall of the cameracasing defining -a horizontal'base and adapted to accept two light beamscoming from the object to be photographed, a first reflecting memberarranged inside of said casing in the path of the first of said lightbeams and reflecting it inside of said casing along a path parallel tosaid camera front wall, a second reflecting member arranged at leastpartly in the path of the second of said light beams and adapted toreflect said reflected first light beam in a direction parallel to thepath of said second light beam, a movable support for said secondreflecting member for moving said member out of the path of said secondlight beam, a viewing opening in the rear wall of said camera casingarranged in the path of said second and said twice reflected first lightbeams, a view finder lens, a movable common support for said view finderlens and said second reflecting member, and means to move said commonsupport so as to simultaneously move said view finder lens into the pathof said second light beam and to move said second reflecting member outof this path, and vice versa.

3. In a camera of the character described, a combined range and viewfinder unit comprising two openings in the front wall of the cameracasing defining a horizontal base and adapted to accept two light beamscoming from the object to be photographed, a first reflecting memberarranged inside of said casing in the path of the first of said lightbeams and reflecting it inside of said casing along a path parallel tosaid camera front wall, a second reflecting member arranged at leastpartly in the path of the second of said light beams and adapted toreflect said reflected first light beam in a direction parallel to thepath of said second light beam, a movable support for said secondreflecting member for moving said member out of the path of said secondlight beam, a viewing opening in the rear wall of said camera casingarranged in the path of said second and said twice reflected first lightbeams, a view finder lens, a movable common support for said view finderlens and said second reflecting member, and an operating 4 memberadapted to act by at least one lever on said support in such a manner asto shift simultaneously said view finder lens into the path of saidsecond light beam and to shift said second reflecting member out of itspath, respectively, to shift simultaneously said view finder lens out ofthe path of said second light beam and shift said second reflectingmember into its path.

4. In a camera of the character described, a combined range and viewfinder unit comprising two openings in the front wall of the cameracasing defining a horizontal base and adapted to accept two light beamscoming from the object to be photographed, a first reflecting memberarranged inside of said casing in the path of the first of said lightbeams and reflecting it inside of said casing along a path parallel tosaid camera front wall, a second reflecting member arranged at leastpartly in the path of the second of said light beams and adapted toreflect said reflected first light beam in a direction parallel to thepath of said second light beam, a movable support for said secondreflecting member for moving said member out of the path of said secondlight beam, a viewing opening in the rear wall of said camera casingarranged in the path of said second and said twice reflected first lightbeams, and at least partly movable view finder lens system, a movablecommon support for at least one of the lenses of said lens system andfor said second reflecting member, said common support arranged near therear wall of the camera casing, a separate movable support for at leastone other lens of said lens system, said separate support arranged nearthe front wall of said casing, a lever-like member provided with twolever arms, each of these lever arms engaging one of said supports, anda rotatable shaft secured to a central point of said lever forsimultaneously shifting said second reflecting member out of the path ofsaid second light beam and shifting said lens system in the paththereof, and vice versa.

5. In a camera of the character described, a combined range and viewfinder unit comprising two openings in the front wall of the cameracasing defining a horizontal base and adapted to accept two light beamscoming from the object to be photographed, a first reflecting memberarranged inside of said casing in the path of the first of said lightbeams and reflecting it inside of said casing along a path parallel tosaid camera front wall, a second reflecting member arranged at leastpartly in the path of the second of said light beams and adapted toreflect said reflected first light beam in a direction parallel to thepath of said second light beam, a movable support for said secondreflecting member for moving said member out of the path of said secondlight beam, a viewing opening in the rear wall of said camera casingarranged in the path of said second and said twice reflected first lightbeams, a view finder lens system, a range finder lens arranged inoperative range finding position between said second reflecting memberand said viewing opening, a common support for at least one of thelenses of said view finder lens system, for said second reflectingmember and for said range finder lens, said common support arranged nearthe, rear wall of the camera casing slidable parallel thereto, aseparate support for at least one other lens of said view finder lenssystem, said separate support arranged near the front wall of said cas-5 ing slidable parallel thereto, a lever-like member provided with twolever arms, each of these lever arms engaging one of said supports, anda rotatable shaft secured to a central point of said lever forsimultaneously shifting said second reflecting member and said rangefinder len out of the path of said second light beam and shifting saidview finder lens system into the path thereof, and vice versa.

JACQUES BOLSEY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

Number Number 6 UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Kuppenbender Feb. 25,1936 Gehrke July 12, 1938 Liebmann Jan. 28, 1941 FOREIGN PATENTS CountryDate Switzerland Nov. 16, 1945 Switzerland Nov. 16, 1945

